Game alert system

ABSTRACT

A game alert system includes a device mountable on a game feeder that detects motion in a target area and automatically sends an electronic signal to a user, or a hunter, in a remote location to notify the hunter of movement in the area, without alerting or startling animals that triggered the device.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.15/181,097, filed Jun. 13, 2016, which is a U.S. application Ser. No.14/691,476, filed Apr. 20, 2015, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,380,776, whichclaims benefit of priority to U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No.61/981,522, filed Apr. 18, 2014 both of which are incorporated herein byreference in their entirety for all purposes.

BACKGROUND

Feral hogs are wild hogs that are descended from domestic pigs thatescaped or were released from captivity and have become a verysuccessful invasive species, particularly in the Southern andSoutheastern United States. The Texas Parks and Wildlife Departmentreports that it is estimated that more than 1.5 million feral hogs livein Texas alone at the time of filing of this application. Feral hogs area destructive nuisance animal that competes with game and domesticlivestock for food, destroys and damages crop plants and pasture and canalso destroy fencing and other structures.

While many ranchers and land owners attempt to control hog populationsthrough trapping and hunting of hogs, experience has shown that hogsquickly adapt and learn to avoid traps and hunters. While hogs have pooreyesight, they have well developed senses of smell and hearing and areextremely fast movers, making control methods difficult. Experience hasalso shown that when a hog population is hunted during daylight hours,those hogs quickly become nocturnal feeders, hiding during daylight.

Because of these behavior patterns, many hunters hunt hogs exclusivelyor primarily at night, most often around electric feeders thatperiodically throw corn or bait on the ground, or that can be controlledto throw feed on command. Various devices have been developed to aidhunters in night hunting of hogs, many of which are designed toilluminate the area around a feeder so the hogs can be seen at night.Some products that have been tried are motion sensor lights that mounton a feeder and illuminate the ground around a feeder when motion isdetected. This arrangement has drawbacks in that the animals arenecessarily located between the light and the hunter which makes itdifficult to see the hogs, particularly through a rifle scope at night.Another product is marketed under the name “Hoginator” and purports tosolve this problem by providing a battery powered motion sensor lightthat mounts on a pole and points toward the feeder, thus providingbetter illumination and no “blinding” of the hunter by looking into thelight. The Hoginator, however, can fail in a real world huntingenvironment, since when hogs converge on a feed area they are likely todestroy anything at ground level that comes between them and availablefeed.

Additionally, field studies of area lighting products have proven thatthe permanent night lighting of an area over an extended period of time(regardless of color of light) has an adverse effect on the game feedingat the lighted feeder. Deer and larger hogs tend to avoid a lighted areaif other feed sources are available. Hog hunting on most ranches iscarried out to control the hog population and limit damage caused by thehogs. It is, therefore, counterproductive to a hunting property toemploy a control method that negatively impacts conventional deer orexotic game hunts in an affected area.

In summary, there are inherent difficulties in attempting to adequatelylight a hunting area, thereby allowing a hunter to hunt fromconventional hunting locations (existing hunting blinds) at night. Theavailable products simply do not provide adequate light to takeeffective shots outside of a 30-50 yard range. In most instances,permanent hunting blinds are set in excess of 100+ yards, rendering thefeeder lighting products useless. Rifle mounted scopes cannot gather theneeded light from an area light in excess of 100 yards away, and thekeen sense of smell of feral hogs makes it advantageous to place ahunting blind up to 100 yards from a feeder

SUMMARY

The game alert system of the current disclosure provides solutions to atleast some of the drawbacks of the prior art by providing a novelimprovement in the field, at least because the disclosed systems do notrely on illumination of the hunting area. The present disclosureprovides significant advantages as a device to be used with night visionequipment to hunt hogs or other species at night with no groundillumination in the hunting area, thus having no negative impact on gamevisiting an area to feed. The devices are also not ground mounted sothey are not impacted or destroyed by game movement in a given area.

The disclosure can be described in certain embodiments as a devicemountable on a game feeder that detects motion in a 360° target area andautomatically sends an electronic signal to a user, or a hunter, in aremote location to notify the hunter of movement in the area, withoutalerting or startling any animals that triggered the device. The devicethus allows a hunter in a remote location such as a hunting blind orstand as far as 100 or more yards distant, to be aware of game in thetarget area and to see the game with night vision equipment withoutproducing light or sound that would startle the game.

It is a further aspect of the disclosure that the devices and methodscan be effective in day light as well and are not restricted to nighthunting. Electronic signals effective during night time or daylight caninclude, but are not limited to an LED indicator on the device or wiredto the device, a laser light emitter directed at the hunter's location,either a pulse or steady beam; or a BLUETOOTH® or other wireless or hardwired device connected to the motion detector that, upon receiving aninput from the motion detector transmits a signal to a remote device ata hunter's location. The remote device can be a smartphone, audio orvideo output device, computer tablet or notebook, or other deviceconfigured to receive the signal and to provide an auditory ormechanical output to alert a hunter of game near the feeder. The outputcan be any appropriate audio signal, including but not limited to abeep, ringtone, or other sound, a text, a vibration, a light, or acombination of sound and vibration or sound, light and vibration. It isunderstood that any such sound is preferably of low enough volume not tostartle any game near the feeder or the hunter. As such the device canalso include headphones or earbuds. It is a further aspect that, inembodiments that include a laser emitter signal that the laser can beseen by the hunter, or can be aimed at a device that responds with asecondary signal.

While the disclosure is being described in terms of hunting and nighthunting of hogs in particular, it is understood that devices describedhere are not so limited and can also be used for non-lethal activitiessuch as photography, film, or live capture methods, and with respect toany appropriate animal species, including but not limited to wild,feral, agricultural livestock or domesticated animals.

While not being limited to any particular mounting system, in certainembodiments the Game Alert is configured to be affixed to the undersideof an existing feeder, and such a system can be powered by a dedicatedbattery pack attached to the unit itself or by permanent wiring to anexisting feeder battery or power source that is also powering thefeeder.

During use of certain embodiments, the Game Alert can be mounted on afeeder as described, while a hunter or other user is positioned at adistance from the Game Alert unit. The unit can then be triggered bygame or animal movement around the alarmed feeder. Triggering of aninline nighttime LED motion sensor switch can send voltage to a small12V LED emitter affixed to a clicktight strip light DC plug connector.An LED adapter splice cable is used to connect to a 12V power source.The lighted LED light notifies the hunter to the presence of animalsnear the feeder. In those instances when a hunter is positioned from 100to 500 yards from the feeder, a rifle or scope-mounted illuminator canbe activated to illuminate the area near the feeder and to identify ananimal.

While the current disclosure is being described in terms of a preferredtype of sensor, a day or a night time motion sensor, the invention isnot limited to a particular sensor. For example, the described devicesand systems can be adapted to use any type of sensing device known inthe art that alerts a user to the presence of animals in the targetarea. Such sensors include, but are not limited to passive infrared heatsensors, ultrasonic and microwave sensors, and acoustic wave orvibration sensors.

The Game Alert system thus allows a hunter to sit and wait for game indarkness or low light conditions, or to wait in daylight without havingto concentrate or even stay awake for long periods while waiting foranimals to approach a feeder. With Game Alert the hunter can simply sitcomfortably waiting for Game Alert to trigger, notifying the hunter toready rifle, illuminate and shoot.

An initial prototype system was constructed with the electroniccomponents contained in a waterproof and varmint-proof containmenthousing. The prototype was constructed of schedule 40 PVC and included aCORONIS 77 LED strip light in Red and a click tight strip light DCconnector plug. It is understood that the containment box and piping canbe made of other materials known and used in the art, including but notlimited to metals such as aluminum or stainless steel, ceramics,plastics or high density polymeric materials, for example. The use ofall such materials is contemplated by the present disclosure.

In certain embodiments the disclosure can be described as amotion-activated, stealth hunting light designed specifically for nighthog hunting around feed areas, hog wallows, or trails. The lightfeatures a magnetic base for easy installation on the bottom of metalfeeders. In a preferred embodiment the alert light is amotion-activated, single-point, red LED that is triggered by themovement of any animal with a total body area larger than 3 square feet.Once activated, the light stays on for a total of 10 seconds beforeturning off. If motion is still detected after 5 seconds of beingdeactivated, the LED will re-illuminate. The light intensity is so low,it does not change game behavior, yet it is highly visible to thehunter. Certain embodiments also include a two-position illuminatedrocker switch that energizes the hunting light, confirming battery poweroutput and that internal circuitry is activated. During use,microcircuit technology contained in the device senses game activity andenergizes the red LED emitter/indicator, notifying the hunter that gameis present.

The disclosed systems can also be combined in a kit or package forcommercial sale, including a rifle-mountable green light emitting diode(LED) flashlight. Once the sensor has sensed animal movement andilluminated, a hunter can activate the green LED light on the flashlightby pressing a Tactical Pressure Switch, allowing him or her to quicklyscan the area for hogs and take aim.

In preferred embodiments the alert device housing can be constructed ofmetals such as stainless steel or aluminum, or of ceramic or polymericmaterials. Certain embodiments are constructed of acrylonitrilebutadiene styrene (ABS) u/v weather resistant polymer resin, injectionmolded from a machined injection tool, and powered by a 9-volt battery.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective top view of an embodiment of the disclosure.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the top of an embodiment of the disclosure.

FIG. 3 is a 90° rotated perspective top view of an embodiment as shownin FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is a rear plan view of an embodiment of the disclosure.

FIG. 5 is a side plan view of an embodiment of the disclosure.

FIG. 6 is a front plan rear view of an embodiment of the disclosure.

FIG. 7 is a bottom perspective view of an embodiment of the disclosure.

FIG. 8 is a bottom perspective plan view of an embodiment of thedisclosure.

FIG. 9 is a 90° rotated bottom perspective view of an embodiment asshown in FIG. 7.

FIG. 10 is an exploded view of an embodiment of the disclosure.

FIG. 11 is rotated view of the exploded view of as in FIG. 10.

FIG. 12 is an illustration of use of embodiments of the disclosure inwhich a hunter is notified of the presence of an animal near a remotefeeder.

FIG. 13 is an illustration of an embodiment of the disclosure disposedunder a game feeder.

FIG. 14 is a flow diagram illustrating a method of use of the discloseddevices.

While the figures are described in terms of a top and a bottom of thedevice, it is understood that the device can be mounted under a gamefeeder for example, with the sensor pointed down, or it can be mountedin certain embodiments with the sensor pointed up, as shown in thedrawings. The choice of the term “top” or “bottom” is, therefore,arbitrary and merely used for convenience in describing the variousembodiments described herein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

A preferred embodiment of a game alert device is shown in the severalviews of FIGS. 1-10. The device as shown includes a two part housing,including an upper housing 9 and lower housing 1. The housing parts canbe assembled as shown by a threaded interlock such that the housing canbe screwed apart, or it can be closed with a friction fit or adhesivebond. It is also understood that the housing can be provided in a singlepart, or in three or more parts as appropriate.

The assembled housing as shown is in the shape or configuration of aspheroid, or elongated spheroid and is of a size that is compact enoughto be lightweight and unobtrusive, but large enough to contain theinternal components. The generally spheroidal shape is adopted at leastin part to maximize the smooth shape of the device and to minimizeanimal damage caused by chewing or scratching on corners or edges of thedevice. The device can be provided, however, in any other shape orconfiguration, included, but not limited to a cuboid, cylindrical,rectangular cylindrical, triangular pyramidal, rectangular pyramidal,cone, truncated cone, frustrum, hexahedral, heptahedral, octahedral,nonahedral, decahedral or dodecahedral, for example, or combinations ofany of these, or representative of an object, for example. All suchvariations, including irregular solid figures not named can be used andcombination of any of such shapes would fall within the spirit and scopeof the appended claims.

The housing is preferably constructed of a durable material that isweather resistant and animal resistant and would include metals such assteel or aluminum, or coated metal materials, or ceramic or polymericmaterials that can be machined or molded into the appropriate shapes.

As shown in the exploded view of FIG. 10, the device can be attached orplaced on a feeder, such as on the bottom of a feeder and held in placeby an attachment means such as a magnet 2, or other fastening means suchas screws, rivets, bolts, clamps, a belt or adhesives, for example. Itis understood that the device can also be attached to other objects suchas trees, poles, etc. or if using a magnet as shown, the device can bemagnetically attached to a metal object or plate attached to a feeder orother object. The upper housing provides an opening 16 into the interiorof the housing configured to accept and contain the sensor apparatus 18,a part of which projects from the interior of the housing through theopening 16. In certain embodiments the sensor can be adjusted orconfigured to detect only the presence of large animals to prevent“false alarms,” or can be configured to transmit a different ordistinguishable signal when triggered by a large vs. a smaller animal,such as a small varmint such as a rabbit, raccoon, coyote or fox vs. aferal hog, for example, or to distinguish a hog from a larger animalsuch as a deer, cow or horse, for example.

The sensor device in this particular embodiment is mounted on a sensorboard 4, and is protected by a sensor cover 5, and is connected to acontrol board 3, that provides the electronic control circuitry. Thecircuit board is also connectable to a power source. In the embodimentsshown, the power source can be one or more batteries 6, and can be a 9volt battery as shown or 1, 2, 3, or more AA or AAA batteries. Thebatteries are contained within the housing and are accessible by abattery door 7 that can be secured with a battery door screw 8 or otherdevices.

In the embodiment shown in the figures, the lower housing 1 alsoprovides openings for insertion of a power switch 10 and an LEDindicator light 11 that can inform a user at a distance that the motionhas been detected.

As described above, the device can be in wired or wireless communicationwith a transmitter device to send an alerting signal to a user at adistance of 100 yards, or even 200, 300, 400, or 500 or more yards fromthe device. The transmitter can send a radio, cellular, or otherappropriate signal and can in certain embodiments be equipped with anantenna to receive signals from a user to configure or operate thedevice. A transmitter or transceiver 15 as described is represented inFIG. 10 as incorporated into the electronic circuit board, but can alsobe placed elsewhere within the housing or external to the housing. FIG.11 is a rotated exploded view showing the components as in FIG. 10except that the optional transmission device is not included.

FIG. 12 is an illustration of embodiments of the inventions during use.As shown, a hunter or other user can attach a device to the bottom of anautomatic or manually controlled game feeder with an integrated magnetor other attachment means, and power the device on. The user can thensit in a remote deer blind or stand in darkness or light from about 50yards, 100 yards to 500 or more yards distant from the feeder and waitfor a signal from the motion detector device to know that game is in thevicinity of the feeder. When receiving such a notification in darkness,the user can activate a scope or rifle mounted light, preferably a laserfor a period only long enough to identify the game and take aim. In thisway the other animals in the area are less likely to spook and run awayfrom the feeder.

The signal can be transmitted from a radio or cellular transmitter incommunication with the sensor device to the user's smartphone, cellphone, pager, tablet or other computer as an audio, visual, vibratory,text signal or any combination thereof to alert the hunter to thepresence of motion near the feeder.

In one embodiment, the transmitter on the device can be configured tosend a signal to a receiving device, such as a smartphone with anapplication installed and running thereon, to alert the user to thepresence of a certain size of animal. The application can be configuredto provide the alert via sound, vibration, a visual cue, and/or othermeans, and the alert can vary depending on the size of the animal. Forexample, a signal indicating that a small animal such as a rabbit orsquirrel has been detected can be used by the application to display asmall rabbit silhouette on the smartphone. A larger animal can result inthe display of a hog silhouette, and a still larger animal can result inthe display of a deer silhouette.

An embodiment of use of a device as disclosed is described in FIG. 14.As seen in the figure, a user powers the sensor on 110, which activatesscanning 115. Scanning can be continuous or periodic as appropriate tothe situation. When the sensor detects the presence of an animal 120,the processor determines the size or category of size of the animal 125and compares the data to preset requirements 130. If the animal does notmeet the preset limits the signal is disregarded 135 and the deviceresumes scanning 115. If the detected animal falls within the presetlimit the device activates the light 140 and optionally causes atransmission device to send a signal 145 to a user. The user can thensend a return signal or otherwise acknowledge receipt of the signal 150.If the signal is not acknowledged, the device can pause for apredetermined time and then resend the signal 155. If the signal isacknowledged the device can deactivate scanning 160 for a predeterminedperiod 165, Alternatively the device can be programmed to end 170 untilreactivated by a user to return to active scanning 115.

In another embodiment (not shown herein), the LED of the device can bemounted near the top of the device, and can be provided with a swivelmounting. In this embodiment, the device can be located on the ground,on a tree, or in another position, and the LED can be manipulated by auser to point towards a desired location, such as a blind in which theuser will be waiting during operation of the device.

In yet another embodiment (not shown herein), one or more cameras can beincluded in the device, or the device can include connections operableto connect to one or more external cameras. The device can be configuredso that the camera takes photographs at regular intervals, which can beset by a user, or can be configured to begin taking photographs whenmotion is detected, or when a particular type of motion and animal hasbeen detected, such as when a larger animal has been detected. Moreover,the camera can be configured to take video and sound, not just stillimages. The device and/or the camera can include non-volatile memory andappropriate hardware and software to store the photographs or videoimages. The camera can be removable from the device or can bepermanently attached to the device and, in either event, the device caninclude appropriate hardware and software to allow a user to downloadthe photographs or video from the device. For example, the device caninclude an USB port or other standard port to which a user can attach acomputer and transfer the images from the camera or other memory of thedevice. In yet another embodiment, the device can transmit images fromthe camera to a remote location together with the signal indicating thatan animal has been detected, and the image can be displayed and/orstored on the user's smartphone.

In still another embodiment, the device can include appropriate hardwareand software to transmit and receive global positioning system (GPS)signals. Such as feature may be useful in order to help track or mapanimal movements. For example, a plurality of the devices with GPSlocators may be set in a variety of locations throughout a ranch, farm,park, or the like. Each device can then store in memory the times, sizesof animals, images of animals, and the like detected and recorded duringoperation over a given time period, such as overnight. Because eachdevice has a GPS locator, the information gathered by each device can beaggregated and mapped to one or more maps of the ranch, farm, park orthe like, and such a map can be animated, which can reveal certainanimal movements over the time of operation. The time of operation andinformation so mapped can include data gathered over hours, days, weeks,months or the like as may be desired, thereby allowing a user to obtainuseful information about the location, movement, and habits of variousanimals.

The devices can be configured to operate in the dark at night, or duringthe daylight hours relieving the hunter of the need to remainconcentrated on the feeder for the entire hunting period.

Although the inventions have been described in terms of specificsituations such as night hunting, it is understood that use of theinventions is not limited to the preferred embodiments described herein.

All of the apparatus, components and methods disclosed and claimedherein can be made and used without undue experimentation in light ofthe present disclosure. While the apparatus, components and methods ofthis invention have been described in terms of preferred embodiments, itwill be apparent to those of skill in the art that variations may beapplied to the construction or components described herein withoutdeparting from the concept, spirit and scope of the invention. All suchsimilar substitutes and modifications apparent to those skilled in theart are deemed to be within the spirit, scope and concept of theinvention as defined by the appended claims.

The invention claimed is:
 1. A method for notifying an animal'spresence, the method comprising: powering on a presence detector deviceat a second location that is at least 50 yards away from a firstlocation, wherein the second location includes a detection zone of thepresence detector device; scanning the detection zone using the presencedetector device to detect the presence of at least one animal in thedetection zone; responsive to detecting the presence of the at least oneanimal, activating, for a predetermined period, a visual signal at thesecond location, wherein the visual signal is visible from the firstlocation; deactivating the scanning of the detection zone during thepredetermined period; shielding the visual signal from being visiblefrom the detection zone; deactivating the visual signal after thepredetermined period ends; and reactivating the scanning of thedetection zone within five seconds after the predetermined period ends.2. The method of claim 1, wherein scanning the detection zone furthercomprises continuously scanning the detection zone when the presencedetection device is powered on.
 3. The method of claim 1, wherein thepredetermined period is at least ten seconds.
 4. The method of claim 1,wherein using the presence detector device to detect the presence of atleast one animal in the detection zone further comprises detectingmotion of the animal or the animals using at least one of: a motionsensor, a passive infrared heat sensor, an ultrasonic sensor, amicrowave sensor, an acoustic wave sensor, and a vibration sensor. 5.The method of claim 1, wherein activating the visual signal furthercomprises: responsive to detecting the presence of the animal or theanimals, determining a size or characteristic of a detected animal;comparing the size or characteristic to a preset limit; and activatingthe visual signal when the detected animal falls within the presetlimit.
 6. The method of claim 1, wherein the detection zone is shaped asa 360° cone under the detection device.
 7. The method of claim 1,further comprising: responsive to detecting the presence of the animalor the animals, transmitting a wireless signal.
 8. The method of claim7, wherein the wireless signal comprises a radio frequency (RF) signalor a cellular signal.
 9. The method of claim 8, wherein the wirelesssignal has a range of at least 500 yards.
 10. The method of claim 7,wherein the wireless signal is receivable by at least one of aBLUETOOTH® device, a smartphone, and a portable computer.
 11. The methodof claim 1, wherein the presence detector device comprises: a housing,an electronic circuit contained in the housing; a presence detectormounted in the housing and connected to the electronic circuit, thepresence detector enabled for scanning the detection zone and detectingthe presence of the animal or the animals; a visual signal devicemounted on the housing and connected to the electronic circuit, thevisual signal device enabled for generating the visual signal, whereinthe visual signal device shields the visual signal from being visiblefrom the detection zone.
 12. The method of claim 11, wherein the visualsignal device comprises one or more light emitting diodes.
 13. Themethod of claim 1, wherein the first location comprises a hunting standor blind.
 14. A method for hunting an animal comprising the steps of:activating an electronic circuit of a presence detecting device mountedin a housing on a game attracting structure; detecting the presence ofone or more animals using a sensor, connected to the electronic circuitand at least partially contained in the housing; in response to thedetecting, receiving a signal from the sensor at a notification deviceconnected to the electronic circuit; outputting a visual notification,for a predetermined period, and a wireless notification using thenotification device to a location at least 50 yards from the presencedetecting device, wherein the visual notification is not observable bythe one or more animals in a detection zone of the sensor; deactivatingthe presence detecting device during the predetermined period;receiving, using a wireless communication device at the location, thewireless notification indicating the presence of the animals near thegame attracting structure; deactivating the visual notification afterthe predetermined period ends; and reactivating the presence detectingdevice within five seconds after the predetermined period ends.
 15. Themethod of claim 14, wherein the sensor comprises a motion sensor. 16.The method of claim 14, wherein the game attracting structure comprisesan automatic feeder.
 17. The method of claim 14, wherein the wirelessnotification comprises light from a light emitting diode.
 18. The methodof claim 14, wherein the wireless notification comprises a radiofrequency (RF) signal.
 19. A device for hunting comprising: a housing; asensor attached to the housing, wherein the sensor is operable to detectone or more animals in a detection zone of the sensor; first means fordetermining a size of an animal detected by the sensor, wherein thefirst means is in communication with the sensor and is attached to thehousing; and second means for providing, for a predetermined period, avisual notification to a remote location from the housing, wherein thesecond means is attached to the housing and is responsive to the firstmeans to provide the visual notification when the animal is of apreselected size, wherein the second means excludes the detection zonefrom illumination by the second means, and wherein the first means isdeactivated during the predetermined period, the visual notification isdeactivated after the predetermined period, and the first means isreactivated after the predetermined period.